प्रश्न समजून घेणे ही प्रश्न सोडविण्याच्या दिशेने पहिली पायरी ..!

इक्वल कम्युनिटी फाउंडेशन आपल्या एक्शन फॉर इक्वलिटी या कार्यक्रमाच्या माध्यमातून विषमतेवर आधारित पुरुषी मानसिकता बदलण्याचा प्रयत्न करत आहे. १५ आठवड्यांच्या प्रशिक्षण कार्यक्रमाच्या शेवटच्या दोन आठवड्यामध्ये यातील सहभागी मुले काही कृती कार्यक्रम (Action event) करत असतात. नुकत्याच संपलेल्या आठव्या प्रशिक्षण कार्यक्रमानंतर “लिंगभाव आणि प्रसारमाध्यमे” याविषयावर कृती कार्यक्रम करण्यात आला.

For an English translation of this blog article please click here.

कोणताही प्रश्न सोडविण्यासाठी, अगोदर तो प्रश्न आहे याची जाणीव झाली पाहिजे. त्याचप्रमाणे आजच्या नव्या पिढीतील पुरुषांनी स्त्रियांसोबत होणा-या भेदभाव आणि हिंसेच्या विरोधात उभे राहावे, कृती करावी असे वाटत असेल तर अगोदर त्यांच्या स्वतःच्या आसपासच्या वातावरणात असणारे या प्रश्नाचे अस्तित्व आणि स्वरूप त्यांना जाणवले पाहिजे.

समाजावर प्रसारमाध्यमांचा खूप मोठा प्रभाव पडत असतो. त्यातून लोक अनुकरण करत असतात. मात्र आजकाल सर्वच प्रसारमाध्यमांमध्ये स्त्री आणि पुरुष यांना लिंगभेदावर आधारित चौकटीत अडकविण्याचा प्रयत्न होताना दिसतो. या कृतीकार्यक्रमाच्या माध्यमातून मुलांनी वर्तमानपत्रे, जाहिरात, चित्रपट, गाणी, टी.व्ही. मालिका यामध्ये दिसणारी विषमता शोधण्याचे, समजून घेण्याचे प्रयत्न केले.

अशा अनेक मुद्यांवर मुलांनी सविस्तर चर्चा करून वर्तमानपत्रे, मासिके यातून कात्रणे काढली. त्या कात्रणांच्या सहाय्याने सुंदर कोलाज पोस्टर्स बनवली. या प्रशिक्षण कार्यक्रमाच्या सहभागाबद्दल दिल्या जाणा-या प्रमाणपत्र प्रदान कार्यक्रमात उपस्थित असणा-या पालक आणि वस्तीतील इतर लोकांसमोर त्याचे सादरीकरण करून चर्चा घडवून आणली. इतकेच नाही तर, आपण स्वतः कधी हिंसा आणि भेदभाव करणार नाही आणि इतरांना करू देणार नाही, याबद्दल आपल्या मित्रांमध्ये आणि समाजात जनजागृती करू अशी सर्वांनी प्रतिज्ञा घेतली.

  

 

 

 

Young men from the AfE programme discussing posters, taking the pledge and receiving certificates. For more pictures from the action event click here.

आम्हाला याची पूर्ण जाणीव आहे की, केवळ अशा पोस्टर्स आणि चर्चा यातून लगेच आणि फार मोठा बदल होणार नाही; तशी अपेक्षाही नाही. मात्र या निमित्ताने स्वतःच्या घरात आणि आसपास राहणा-या मुलींच्या, स्त्रियांच्या आयुष्यातील भेदभाव आणि हिंसा याबद्दल १८ वस्त्यांमधील २०२ मुलांच्या मनात काही प्रमाणात जाणीव निर्माण झाली. ही निर्माण झालेली जाणीव आणि त्या जाणीवेतून या लिंगभेदाबद्दल लोकांशी चर्चा घडवून आणण्याचा त्यांनी केलेला छोटासा पण महत्वपूर्ण प्रयत्न, हा समतेवर आधारित समाजाच्या उभारणीच्या दिशेने पडलेले एक मोलाचे पाऊल असेल, हे मात्र नक्की !

– Shrikant LaxmiShankar | Programme Development Associate | Equal Community Foundation

The first step towards solving the problem is understanding it!

Equal Community Foundation is working towards changing the attitudes and behaviours of young men through the Action for Equality (AfE) program. In the last two weeks of this 15-week training program, young men participate in Action Events.

The most recent action event after the completion of 8th cycle of the AfE program was based on the issue of Gender Discrimination & Media.

To solve any problem, we need to understand it first. Similarly, if men want to stand against violence and discrimination, if they want to act against it, then they need to first realise the existence and nature of this problem in their own environment.

The impact of media on society is huge. Nowadays, media tries to attract women and men into a frame based on gender discrimination. Through the medium of the AfE action events, our young men analysed the inequality reflected in newspapers, advertisements, films, songs, television serials and other kinds of media.

Here are some examples discrimination against women reflected through media-

• In almost all advertisements, we see that is a woman has backache because of doing household chores, she is given an ointment or a tablet to make her feel better. Is the responsibility of others in the household over by doing this? Instead of talking about the need of same allocation of work, the media teaches us that using an ointment or a tablet will help women quickly finish all her chores (sometimes by flying in the air too?) What type of message we are giving the community through this?
• In multiple advertisements for shaving blades, shaving creams even refreshments women are ‘displayed’. Is this really necessary?
• There are multiple songs like ‘sheila ki jawani’, munni badnaam hui, paisa fek tamasha dekh, nachengi pinki’ which are humiliating and insulting to all women. In songs like ‘Tu chiz badi he, mast mast’ women are described as a ‘chiz’ which basically means ‘an object’. Really? Is a woman a mere ‘object’ for us?
• In films, why are actresses only used for entertainment? Why are ‘rowdy’ (careless) or ‘dabang’ (strong) characters associated with actors coming to the rescue of actresses?
• Why are women from the same television serials always wearing expensive saris while working in the kitchen? Or standing helpless before God? Or always fighting and conspiring?

Our young men did a detailed search on many such issues and collected cut outs from various newspapers and magazines.  With the use of these cut outs they created poster collages. During the distribution of certificates at the Action Event, they presented these posters and had discussions with the parents and other community members present at the event. That’s not all; they even pledged not to be a part of any kind of violence and discrimination henceforth and to encourage their friends to do the same.

We are completely aware that posters and discussions like these will not bring about major change in the attitudes and behaviours of these young men. We don’t expect it to! However, because of such programmes, we are able to create awareness regarding the issue in the minds of some 202 children from 18 communities in Pune.

The realisation and because of the realisation, a small but important effort taken by the young men to discuss gender discrimination in their community, is an essential step to provide the direction for the establishment of a community based on equality!

Mistakes made, lessons learnt

We are starting the new year with new challenges, revised priorities and a stronger team. In this new year, we will continue to share with you some of the lessons we have learnt on an ongoing basis. We urge you to ask us questions, share feedback and share our findings with your friends and colleagues.

In this section, we have highlighted two of our lessons learnt in the last few months.

1. Emphasise on the element of ‘critical thinking’ in the programme curriculum

One of the most critical tools for implementation of Action for Equality Programme is the curriculum. Curriculum development is an ongoing process and today we are using the 4th version of the curriculum. We have invested a lot of resources to design, develop and strengthen the curriculum.

However, one element that we haven’t emphasised on enough is the element of ‘critical thinking’.

Over the coming months the Action for Equality Programme team will be focussing on embedding this element in each and every module of the Graduate Programme as well as the Alumni Programme. Our objective will be to ensure that we provide inputs to the men who are part of the programme to develop skills including observation, interpretation, analysis, inference, evaluation and explanation.

We expect the men to attend our sessions, learn, unlearn and apply what they have learnt to inform their behaviour. This includes them being able to:

• Recognize problems, to find workable means for meeting those problems

• Gather pertinent information

• Recognize unstated assumptions and values

• Comprehend and use language with accuracy, clarity, and discernment

• Interpret data, to appraise evidence and evaluate arguments

• Draw reasonable conclusions

• Put to test the conclusions and generalizations at which one arrives

• Reconstruct one’s patterns of beliefs on the basis of wider experience

• Render accurate judgments about specific things and qualities in everyday life

We recognise that this is step–by-step process. This means that we do not have to wait for them to take action at the end of the graduate programme, but the process can start from the day they join the programme.

2. Let’s change the conversation

In this section, we talk about a ‘change’ that we as an organisation have gone through over the last few years. Change that is reflected in our approach, principles, model, curriculum, communications; and plans for the future. Change that demands us to look at men as agents of change rather than current or future perpetrators; change that demands us to believe in the fact that men WANT to change; change that demands us to stop pointing fingers and recognise our role in raising men.

These points are further elaborated in the blog that we recently released called ‘Let’s change the conversation’ . Now, our job is also to ensure that the people we work with – our beneficiaries, partners, supporters, well wishers, etc are on the same page with us.

– Rujuta Teredesai | Co-founder | Equal Community Foundation

Empowering men – A timely solution!

Background

India, despite being the world’s largest democracy, remains one of the most unsafe places to be a woman. Even the so-called ‘liberated’ women, who are educated and economically independent, have reported experiencing violence and harassment, especially in public places. According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB)[1], the number of crimes against women continues to rise. Independent research done by the International Centre for Research on Women[2] accounts to around 400 million Indian women (that is, every 3 women out of 4) who have faced some form of physical or psychological violence. Out of which, only 2.3 lakh cases were reported to the police  in 2011 – perhaps a reflection of women’s fear of retribution from the perpetrators of the crime, or rejection from the very institutions that are there to protect them.

The Problem

Recent incidences of men participating in violence against girls and women[3], and later suggesting solutions of restrictions and ‘safety’ orders for women, promote a strikingly misogynist[4] approach –women are responsible for the brunt of violence targeted towards them, hence they deserve it. The men who perpetrate the violence and harassment in the first place are left unaccountable. Even the traditional women’s empowerment movement places the onus on women to achieve equality, leaving men, whose attitudes and behaviour sit at the root of the problem, absent from the process. 

ECF’s research shows that very few NGOs working on women’s empowerment engage men in their approach. But the recent public attacks on young girls have generated public awareness about this issue. Empowering men for women’s empowerment has hit the headlines in India.

Recently, a progressive statement was released by Delhi Minister for health and Family Welfare, Kiran Walia. She said in a statement to the press, “We need to bring up boys differently in our homes. Boys need to be made sensitive right from school. We need to tell them right from the start that being macho is about being cultured and treating women equally.”  Many senior journalists in India, after the recent public attacks on women, have echoed her sentiments. Barkha Dutt tweeted, “Don’t let the mob win. Don’t tell your daughter she can’t go out alone at night. Don’t restrict the clothes she wears. Teach your sons better.”  

The need to address the root cause and engage men as a part of the solution to violence against women has been recognized, finally.

ECF’s Solution

Equal Community Foundation (ECF) is one of the very few organisations that empower men and boys to empower women. Our mission is to empower every man in India with an opportunity to end violence and discrimination against women.

In practice, this is what we do:

• We develop, deploy and scale high impact programmes that mobilise men to take personal and collective action to end violence and discrimination against women.
• We evaluate these programmes to gather evidence that empowering men does indeed empower women. We measure the impact by assessing the experiences of women who live with men who have completed the programmes.
• We research and analyse the best practices employed by other organisations.
• We share all of this information, along with our insights from the field, to grassroots organisations, policy makers, and funders. We do this to shift policy, increase the available funding, and ultimately increase the number of organisations who empower men to empower women.

So far, we have worked with over 1,450 men in 20 communities across Pune; over 600 men have completed our programmes and we have developed over 200 male leaders who continue to volunteer in their communities on a weekly basis. Over 61% women from these communities have reported a significant reduction in incidents of violence or discrimination.

 

 How Can You Help?

We are actively seeking opportunities to scale our approach of empowering men to empower women through partnerships with organisations, networks of community based organisations, civil society groups, and schools and colleges. We will partner with organisations by providing training and developing a database of best practice tools, methodologies and curriculum that can be adopted and replicated by anyone who wishes to work with men in women’s empowerment.

At the same time, we are seeking partners who can provide us with organizational capacity building and financial support in this venture. If you have any ideas or suggestions for building partnerships and support, please contact us.

What do you think of our approach of empowering men to empower women? We would like to hear your opinion! Please write to us or simply comment below. 

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[1] NCRB – Crime against women, 2011 http://ncrb.gov.in/CD-CII2011/cii-2011/Chapter%205.pdf

[2] ICRW – Report on domestic violence, 2000 http://www.icrw.org/files/publications/Domestic-Violence-in-India-3-A-Summary-Report-of-a-Multi-Site-Household-Survey.pdf

[3] A mob of 20 men molest a schoolgirl outside a pub in Guwahati, caught on camera http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/videos/news/Shocking-20-men-molest-girl-in-Guwahati/videoshow/14862672.cms

[4] Sting operation by Tehelka journalists on senior police officials in Delhi-NCR region http://www.tehelka.com/story_main52.asp?filename=Ne140412Coverstory.asp

ECF organises exposure visits Samyak and Magic Bus

In June 2012, ECF visited Samyak and Magic Bus to expose the team to other organisations working with similar aims and methodologies. These two organisations were initially chosen because Samyak works with engaging men for women’s empowerment while Magic Bus mobilizes children living in poverty towards livelihood, through the medium of sports.

The purpose of the visit to Samyak was to learn about organisations working with men on the issue of violence against women, understand their working model, and create a platform to initiate a dialogue for sector research on engaging men to end violence against women. The dialogue with Anand Pawar, founder of Samyak, gave our team an insight into the historical, social and political contexts of working with men in India.

On the other hand, the visit to Magic Bus was more helpful in understanding the methodologies of working with children in lower socio-economic communities. Their approach is to empower children through sports-based activities in becoming confident young leaders in their communities and creating viable livelihoods for themselves.

An important thing we learnt from Magic Bus was to make modules that are easily replicable and create content that is simple in its delivery and powerful in its impact. 

Mentors undergo a refresher course at the Intensive Mentor Training

ECF conducted its periodic Intensive Mentor Training at the Forbes Marshall Welfare Centre in Kasarwadi from June 25 to 29, 2012. The training aimed to re-acquaint the AfE mentors with the concepts of violence and discrimination against women (VAW) and enhance their module delivery and facilitation skills. The number of participants in the training was 14, with 4 AfE mentors and 2 trainee mentors from ECF and 8 community health workers (CHWs) from Forbes Marshall.

Since the CHWs’ main work is on health, the training provided an introduction to the concept of violence and discrimination against women and its consequences on women’s health.

The training modules were designed to build clarity on concepts like violence, discrimination, equity/equality, gender and patriarchy. Rupali Gupta and Ajim Inamdar from ECF and Meghana Marathe from Forbes Marshall facilitated the training through film and documentary screenings, games and discussions. ‘Umbartha’, a Marathi feature film on VaW; ‘India Untouched’, a documentary about untouchability; and an episode of ‘Satyamev Jayate’ on domestic violence were screened and discussed.

Other skill-enhancing modules such as facilitation skills to effectively deliver the AfE – Graduate and Alumni programmes, basic documentation, presentation, and computer skills were also included in the training.

Pravin, a mentor, shared an important learning from this training: effective presentation. “I learnt not to argue about any issue unless I have evidence in the form of facts and figures. I need to question my own presumptions before making a statement, because often what we say actually comes from our internal conditioning and prejudices.”

For Sunil, another mentor, the module on HIV/AIDS and VAW by Meghana provided a new perspective. “I hadn’t thought about this before. Women are more prone to HIV due to men’s control over their sexuality and their secondary social status which provides limited access to healthcare. If they contract HIV, they are the ones who are blamed, even thrown out of the house and not given adequate care.”

The 5 day long training was also a break for the mentors who work mostly in the field. As Rahul puts it, “It was a relaxing and recharging time. We got to re-look at the concepts we deliver in our modules, and we got an opportunity to share and connect with the community health workers.”

New batch of graduates take action against street sexual harassment

The fourth cycle of ECF’s Action for Equality (AfE) Graduate Programme ended in mid-June with 113 young men graduating from 17 communities across Pune. The fifteen-week programme cycle, which began on February 16th earlier this year, was facilitated by ECF mentors to empower young men from the ages of 14-17 to become change-makers towards women’s empowerment in their communities.

In the two weeks from June 11th to 21st, the graduates organised ‘Action Events’ in their communities to mark their graduation and take collective action to reduce violence and discrimination against women. The theme for the events was to address the issue of street sexual harassment in the graduates’ communities. The first week was for preparation and the second one for the actual events. In the first week, the graduates did a survey on women’s experiences of harassment. The aim of this survey was to analyse the number of harassment cases in their communities, and to establish the enormity and gravity of this problem in the minds of the graduates and through them, to the community. Unfortunately, the survey was not successful. (Find out more about it in the failure report)

Even then, the graduates and mentors decided to take up this issue. In the next week, they organised an event on street sexual harassment, which was divided into 2 parts:       

• Graduates, with support from the mentors, explained what qualifies as harassment to the women. They clearly emphasised that acts like staring, wolf-whistling and passing comments to indecent gestures, pinching and grabbing qualify as harassment and are not normal. Graduates shared the nation-wide statistics on harassment, the reasons men harassed women (and other men), and simple steps women can take to deal with the harassers, an important one being not to blame oneself for it.
• All graduates took a pledge in front of the women not to harass a woman ever again and oppose any incidence of harassment they came across.
  

After the presentation, the graduates were given certificates for completing the AfE programme.

The women who attended the event shared their approval of the presentation. They were more willing to share their experiences of harassment after the presentation and agreed to be more vocal about this issue, especially with members of their family. As one woman from Bibwewadi Ota put it, “Harassment is the grim reality that we cope with everyday. But women alone cannot put an end to it as the men who harass need to stop. ECF is doing good work to that end.”